Actor Simon Pegg is the latest Hollywood celebrity who has decided to insult Star Wars fans. Pegg follows in the path of director Rian Johnson, writer Chuck Wendig, and director James Gunn.
Pegg did an interview with Now This while promoting his upcoming flick Mission Impossible: Fallout where he discussed the Star Wars fandom.
Simon Pegg feels guilty for all the negative things he’s said about Jar Jar Binks pic.twitter.com/fnVnfsNe5c
— NowThis (@nowthisnews) July 24, 2018
In the video Pegg talks about how the fans treated Jar Jar Binks and how that treatment affected actor Ahmed Best. Best played Jar Jar Binks and revealed on Twitter recently that he “almost ended [his] life” after facing a media backlash.
20 years next year I faced a media backlash that still affects my career today. This was the place I almost ended my life. It’s still hard to talk about. I survived and now this little guy is my gift for survival. Would this be a good story for my solo show? Lemme know. pic.twitter.com/NvVnImoJ7N
— Ahmed BEst (@ahmedbest) July 3, 2018
Pegg references Best’s confession:
“I feel so ashamed of the fact that there was actually a human victim in that. I think most people were regarding Jar Jar Binks like he was a real creature and wailing on him for being annoying, or whatever, or not liking him. But there was a person behind that. And I read that, and just thought, ‘Christ, I’m one of those people,’ and it makes me feel awful.”
Later on in the obviously edited clip, Pegg begins discussing Kelly Marie Tran, who a number of media outlets are claiming left social media to criticism of her character, Rose Tico.
“There’s no diplomacy in that, there’s no empathy. We’re becoming very, very insular as human beings. We’re becoming very self-driven, selfist; our opinion, our needs, our wants.”
Pegg continues and this is where he decides to insult fans:
“I feel sorry for Kelly Marie Tran because she just was in a film, a f****** film. That’s all it is. None of it matters, none of it.”
You read that right folks. Star Wars is just “a “f****** film. That’s all it is. None of it matters, none of it.”
Pegg, who played Unkarr Plutt in The Force Awakens, thinks so little of the fans who use their hard earned cash to go see Star Wars, believes their enjoyment of Star Wars doesn’t matter whatsoever.
But maybe even more shocking is that Pegg actually implies his entire career as an actor doesn’t matter. If the movies don’t matter, surely the actors in them don’t matter at all either, right? Why in the world should anyone go see a movie if it doesn’t matter? Why should any film studio employ Simon Pegg if it doesn’t matter?
Maybe Simon should ask those questions the next time he insults fans by telling them their enjoyment for Star Wars doesn’t matter.
Interestingly enough, it also shows off a case of double think. In one sentence, Pegg expresses how ashamed he is in criticizing Jar Jar Binks, and then on the other hand he says it’s a movie so it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t make any sense. Which is it? If it doesn’t matter why do you feel ashamed? If you feel ashamed, it must matter on a personal level right?
To make matters worse Pegg concludes the video saying, “It would nice if everyone got on and stopped being so aggressive.”
Criticizing a film and character is not being aggressive. Demanding a better product is not aggression.
What do you make of Pegg’s comments? Am I being overly harsh on him? Or does Pegg deserve to be reminded who allows him to make millions of dollars.